So I Took The Minivan Out For A Drive ...

... even though, frankly, I was scared to drive it.  And it's been fixed!  I mean, if I was so scared to be without a back-up car that I spent more than $1,300 on repairs for this one, why in the hell would I be scared of driving the back-up car?  Sure, a new water pipe (with attendant timing belt change, and a new mount, and brakes and rotors too) may not have been necessary, and I sure could have been ripped off.  But I assume that whatever The Mechanic Around The Corner did, the minivan would ... you know, drive, right?  So what am I so afraid of?  I have to know if the minivan works, and I have to know if those guys didn't fix it.

I was going to drive it to the closest Buffalo Wild Wings to me in order to catch the Second Half of the College Football Playoff Final, but the damn place closed by 9 p.m.  Damn COVID ... I guess, although it would have been nice if the Google search and the B-Dubs website both updated the hours for this place.  Which meant that I spent a half-hour driving the minivan there and back without stopping.  Honestly, half the time I wasn't looking at the windshield but at the thermostat, afraid it'd slowly inch upward until it hit the red.  I remember being stopped at red lights, nervously rubbing the steering wheel and grinding my teeth.

But, I made it home.  And the needle on the thermostat was where it was supposed to be at optimal operation: Just below level.  So, do I trust driving it?  Eh, not yet.